Debbie Millman Instagram – In 2005 I took a class at @svanyc with the late, great Milton Glaser. One of the exercises in his class was writing an essay articulating what your life could be five years into the future envisioning everything you wanted it to be, if you do could anything you wanted without fear or failure. I decided to put my heart into this exercise and wrote a ten-page hand-written essay outlining my biggest, most audacious dreams. For the first time in my life, I didn’t edit what was possible before it was possible and I recorded every hope that I had. I put my disbelief and skepticism and pessimism aside and imagined a future of joy and abundance and freedom. It was a spectacularly life-affirming experience. And over the years—17 to be exact—every single one of the things I wrote about has happened. There is something tangibly mysterious about this exercise and—honestly—I am not exactly sure how it works. Maybe suspending disbelief in steadfastly rigid beliefs can allow some light in. Perhaps declaring what is possible out loud helps it all feel real. Or it could be just human hope, manifested in a moment and forgotten. When Milton stopped teaching I asked him if I could teach the exercise to my students and he agreed. I talked about this on my dear friend @timferriss’ podcast and it went sort of viral. And now, several years later, for the first time ever, I have partnered with @chroniclebooks to create a deck of cards to help anyone else that wants to undertake this exercise! My REMARKABLE LIFE DECK provides prompts to identify your hopes and aspirations, and, by daring you to dream them, helps you make those dreams a reality. Featuring 30 illustrated cards with generative prompts, an instructional booklet, and a workbook for creating your own ten-year plan, this deck makes a meaningful gift for anyone contemplating a big life change, anyone searching for clarity and direction and anyone who wants to imagine what the immensities of their own life can be. Link in my bio or here: https://tinyurl.com/remarkablelife